Tyna of the Lake is a lush, timeless graphic novel for ages 6 and up

Tyna of the Lake is the kind of book that will confound and amaze young readers.  The art style is lovingly drawn and presented on a huge storied canvas. The illustrations convey the grandiose scale of the monsters, their uniqueness and the magic of the world that lives under the lake. Tyna of the Lake is a Russian folktale that has all of the classic elements you’ve witnessed in other stories; but weaves them together in a way that’s surprising and ends like a Seinfeld episode-which is back at the beginning.

This is a textbook example of the fact that a graphic novel is more than the definition of a superhero in tights. Granted, part of that is due to the fact that this doesn’t feel like a graphic novel. Some factions might even just call this a book. After all, it’s got a hard spine, plus a hard cover and back, just like a book. The pages also smell like a book. You know that classic book smell that you loved as a child and still secretly smell when your partner isn’t watching? The smell of the pages made you want to think that this tree died for something worthwhile.

In Tyna of the Lake it’s safe to say that this tree gave its green life to something. This is a magical book that makes you want to believe in the story. A merchant was returning back from a long journey wnen the met Vodyanoy, a water spirit. In exchange for the favor, the merchant agreed to give up the one thing that he didn’t know that he had at home. Well, if he didn’t know that he had it at home, there’s not harm in giving it away, right?

Alas, his wife was pregnant and now his only born son would become Vodyanoy’s property when he turned 9 years-old. I’m guessing that the merchant’s wish wasn’t as big as the payoff for this debt. When the boy’s ninth birthday comes up he’s taken down to the water kingdom by Tyna where he has to compete in a battle with a lobster who is 10 times bigger than him, or be fed to the jellyfish.

See? This feels like a fable or fairy tale that you’ve heard before. I could see parts of The Little Mermaid in the story, as well as another fable that deals in things happening in threes or recurring elements. It’s the presentation, in this case the artwork and packaging that makes Tyna of the Lake stand out as an entertaining book. It’s a graphic novel with a folk tale that you will want kids to read, but it also might not be their first choice for adventure.  

For us, it’s kind of like two pop singers, one of whom sings fabulous songs, but doesn’t do so while gyrating on top of a car in a music video. The later song isn’t horrible, it’s kind of catchy, but has packaging that goes in tandem with the mindless hokum that mainstream audiences like. The former is much more intelligent, relies on the story and craft, thus creating a product that’s far superior. Put another way, one of these is a timeless class game like chess, as opposed to Dancing Line. As a music or gaming fan, I want my son to experience the former one. Tyna of the Lake is the first song. Give your young readers the opportunity to experience how good, different and refreshing a graphic novel can be.